It tastes like crap. I should have suspected as much by the fact that my local beer store had it in inventory. They only stock stuff that doesn't get sold at real beer stores.

Alsemith Numbskull barleywine. It tastes like the pliny clone I left in an 80*F closet for 3 years.

The label didn't state when it was brewed. In fact it suggested that I "age" the beer for 9 months. yeah right. Alesmith probably sat on cases of the stuff thinking it would get better with age and tasted it and realized their mistake and quickly pawned it off to substandard beer shops.

This. Alesmith is a killer brewery and Numbskull is a typically a pretty damn good Barleywine. If it really is 9 years old, you have no idea how it was handled for those 9 years and that makes all the difference in the world.

Never had Numbskull, but I wouldn't drink a 9-yr-old beer unless I knew where it had been most of that time. If it is showing up in stores like that, it is less likely to be intentionally aged that long and more likely a case of "oops, this was in the back of the storeroom and we kinda forgot about it."

This store has dust on most of the bottles. Your curiosity could run wild.

It was weird because the Numbskull was a new arrival there. They just got Ballast Point sculpin with best by dates on the bottles for 6 months ago for $12. Another store 30 minutes away gets fresh 6 packs for that price. I've stopped shopping here. I think they get the hand me downs real beer stores don't want.